During the holidays my uncle’s girlfriend makes these amazing brown sugar shortbread cookies that she rolls out and ices. Unfortunately, she wont give me the recipe. I have searched all over the place for a recipe that tastes like her cookies and I’ve never been able to find one. Perhaps this public plea will make her more sympathetic to my cause?

In the interim though I’ve found a substitute that almost tastes right, but not quite. I used an itty bitty shamrock cookie cutter to make cute shapes and drizzled the tops with green icing and sparkly sprinkles. In literally minutes you’ll have dozens of cookies to share with the little leprechauns in your life.

Shamrock Shortbread (Inspired by the Brown Sugar Shortbread recipe originally published in the April 2007 issue of Everyday with Rachael Ray)

1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 350°. Using an electric mixer, combine the flour, butter and sugar. Press the dough into a ball and roll out on a lightly floured counter. Use cookie cutters to cut the dough into shapes. Place the cookies onto a well greased baking sheet or silpat.

Bake until just slightly golden around the edges, 8-10 minutes. Note: Do not overcook or you’ll have mini shortbread hockey pucks. Let the shortbread cool and decorate as desired with your favorite icing and sugar sprinkles.

Let’s face it, cinnamon rolls do not need any explanation. They really should be considered a right and not a privilege. Therefore enjoy!

For the filling I used:
1 stick softened butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

For the Icing I used:
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
1 tablespoon of vegetable shortening
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Then I added tablespoons of milk until the icing was the correct consistency.

PS: There is no shame in using pre-made bread dough. I’m terrible at baking bread so frozen loaves have become my saving grace.

Cinnamon & Brown Sugar	Mmm Butter!
No One Needs to Know (Shhh)	Roll Out
Spread	Cover
Roll Up	Slice
Arrange	Cover & Let Rise
Double in Size	Mix Mix Mix
Bake @ 400 for 15 Minutes	Drizzle

That Smells DELICIOUS!